What Just 5 Days of Eating UPFs Can Do to Your Brain: Study
The Alarming Effects of Ultra-Processed Foods on Mental Health
UPFs often contain high levels of sodium, refined sugars, cholesterol-spiking fats, and other lab-based ingredients. A recent study linked exposure to UPFs to 32 poor health outcomes, including a higher risk of cardiovascular disease, cancer, metabolic syndrome, obesity, nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, Type 2 diabetes, and even premature death.
Short-Term Effects on Brain Function
Researchers at the Institute for Diabetes Research and Metabolic Diseases of the Helmholtz Center Munich at the University of Tübingen in Tübingen, Germany, found that even in the short term, consuming a high-calorie, UPF-rich diet impairs brain insulin responsiveness and increases liver fat in healthy men. What’s more, and worse? These effects linger long after the eating period.
Insulin and Brain Function
Insulin regulates appetite and metabolism, and insulin resistance — like the kind triggered by UPFs — compromises this regulation and contributes to obesity, Type 2 diabetes, and cognitive dysfunction.
Disruption in the Brain’s Reward Learning Response
The German team also found a link between ultra-processed food consumption and disruption in the brain’s reward learning response, suggesting that as little as five days of overeating can condition the brain for unhealthy eating patterns.
The Study
For the study, 29 healthy male participants between 19 and 27 were divided into a high-caloric diet (HCD) group or a control group. Over five days, the HCD group was told to eat additional daily calories from ultra-processed snack foods. The control group maintained their regular diet.
Findings
The research team found that brain insulin responsiveness increased for the group eating a high-caloric diet. On average, the HCD group increased their daily caloric intake by 1,200 calories. Liver fat content in that group increased dramatically, while brain insulin responsiveness increased as well. One week after resuming a regular diet, insulin activity was significantly lower in the brain.
The Long-Term Effects
After a scant five days of eating UPFs, the HCD group displayed decreased reward sensitivity and increased punishment sensitivity. After a week of normal eating, this trend abated but did not fully reverse itself.
Conclusion
The study suggests that a short-term HCD, rich in sugar and saturated fat, has prolonged effects on the brain that outlast the time-frame of its consumption. Habitual daily intake of sweet and fatty snacks has been shown to increase neural responses to food, while decreasing the preference for low-fat food independent of changes in body weight and metabolism.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What is the impact of UPFs on brain function?
A: Consuming a high-caloric, UPF-rich diet impairs brain insulin responsiveness and increases liver fat in healthy men, with effects lingering after the eating period.
Q: What is the link between UPFs and brain function?
A: UPFs have been linked to disruption in the brain’s reward learning response, suggesting that short-term overeating can condition the brain for unhealthy eating patterns.
Q: What are the long-term effects of UPF consumption?
A: The study suggests that short-term HCD has prolonged effects on the brain, including decreased reward sensitivity and increased punishment sensitivity, which may contribute to the development of obesity and associated diseases.
Q: Is the study gender-specific?
A: Yes, the study was gender-specific, and more research is needed to understand the effects of UPFs on brain function in women and children.
